Lunch Box Ideas for Busy Moms

A handy checklist to help you pack a healthy mid-day meal for your kids:

• Provide water or other fluids to your children in order to avoid dehydration.
• Add a portion of dairy product, such as cheese slices, yoghurt, or milk.
• Add a portion of salad, such as carrots or cucumber. Make sure it looks appealing enough for your child to eat all of it.
• Once a week, include sweet items such as cupcakes or muffins, as an occasional treat.
• Add a portion of easy-to-eat fruits, such as bananas, grapes, apple wedges or peeled slices of orange.
• Add a portion of foods rich in carbohydrates, such as bread or noodles.

Following are some instantaneous and neat-to-eat lunch box ideas you could use:

• Cheese cubes and sliced carrots. Chewing raw vegetables takes some extra time, and this assists the digestive system to release juices at the appropriate time. Besides, calcium in the cheese reduces the incidence of tooth cavities and prevents bone problems, making it a perfect choice for your young ones.
• Walnuts and bananas. A perfect combination of wholesome diet and healthy supplement for your child. It would help them focus on their studies and extra-curricular activities. Make sure you choose firm bananas which would stay fresh until lunch time.
• Fish burger and crispy fries. Fish burger is a healthier alternative to beef burger, which is notably preferred by kids. And it is also a great snack. You can marinate the fish a night before by applying vinegar, red chili powder, crushed black pepper, and salt on square pieces of fish fillets and freeze them. The next morning, dip fish pieces in corn flour and then in a beaten egg. Sprinkle some breadcrumbs upon them, and fry the pieces until they are golden brown. Make a paste of mayonnaise and mustard, and spread it on the lower bun. Place fish pieces with a lettuce leaf on top of each lower bun. Cover with the upper half of the bun, and wrap it in an aluminum foil or plastic wrap. To make the fries crispy, speckle a certain proportion of corn flour on potato strips, before frying them.
• Egg roll. It is relatively easy to eat and convenient to prepare. Prepare an omelet, and after pouring the eggs onto the skillet, cover it with a Paratha, before it starts sizzling. Settle the Paratha on a board, drizzle over it some mustard sauce, and then make a roll. Use a greaseproof paper to hold it together.
• Boiled chicken chutney sandwich and almonds/dates. Children enjoy eating boiled chicken chutney sandwiches. Place a few almonds or dates along with the sandwich.
• Ordinary cheese sandwich. For children who do not like sweet marmalades, a simple yet tasty cheese sandwich is a splendid choice.
• “Nutella” or peanut butter sandwich and cut apple wedges. This is an all-time favourite of kids. Including a fruit along with it will be an added nutritional supplement.
• Cheese cubes, walnuts, and grapes. Adding seasonal fruits will make your child more acquainted with them, and will gradually help develop his taste buds, not to forget the variety of nutrition he/she will get.
• Home cooked. Leftovers from dinner can also be packed, such as rice, potato Sabzi, Daal and Chawal (lentils and rice), Kebabs, Biryani, etc.